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Thursday, December 11, 2008

Our handmade Christmas cards are wonderful for businesses because you can add your own handwritten text. Each card has a white paper inlay inside on which you can print or write your Christmas greetings. Here you can see some of the popular designs.

The Christmas star is created by using foil, that comes from the inside of cottage cheese plastic lids.

Thursday, December 4, 2008

In my first article I mentioned that we use the pulp of shredded office paper to create beautiful recycled luxury paper and paper products. In this article I would like to talk about a very important aspect in conserving and protecting our beautiful South African landscapes - namely contributing to the necessary eradication of alien invading vegetation.

A great deal of South- Africa's water is used by plants that do not belong here. They are called alien invading plants.These plants are invasive because they spread and displace our natural trees and plants.

They have already invaded large areas of good agricultural land and some of our most scenic areas.

Where do alien plants come from? Many invading plants were brought into South-Africa for practical purposes such forestry plantations. And these plants grow so well in South-Africa because they have no natural enemies such as insects and diseases that would have controlled them in their own countries.

But not all invading plants are harmful. Oak trees, bottlebrush, azaleas and most fruit trees are aliens that do not spread aggressively. Certain pines are important forestry trees that are grown in special.They are used for the production of paper and wood products, saving our local trees.

Alien invaders are problematic because of the following reasons:
* They use a lot of water
* They prevent rainwater from reaching rivers and deprived people and ecosystems of much
needed water. Many springs have already dried up because of invading alien trees.
* They displace indigenous plants
* Large areas of South Africa have been ingested with invading alien plants. They destroy
precious vegetation such as fynbos in the Western Cape
*They cause devastating fires
*When invading trees burn, the flames can be up to 15 m high, often destroying houses and
damaging the soil.
*Invading alien plants grown in denser stands than natural shrub preventing firefighters from
putting out a fire
*They cause soil erosion
*Fires in invading alien vegetation are more intense than those in natural vegetation resulting in
damage to the soil
*With the first rains the soil is then washed into the rivers, causing the rivers and damns to fill
up with sand

There is a project in South Africa called " The Working for Water Programme communication Project" that encourages and promotes the following measures:

*Getting informed about plants that are classified as alien invasive plants and looking out for

invading trees and plants in you area and cutting them down

*Planting indigenous trees and shrubs instead

By clearing invading alien vegetation water supplies are improved and it will not be necessary to build so many dams, which in turn saves money. It prevents fires and erosion and protects our local plants and trees.

Lucy and Isa helps by reducing the alien invasive vegetation and uses the fibres of different species. We contribute on a small level to improve the water supplies.

A DIFFERENCE THROUGH ECO-DESIGN

The Lucy and Isa production line starts with the boiling and mashing of wattle bark or other invasive trees in a three-legged iron pot. The wood of the trees that have been harvested serves to fuel the fires of the iron pots. Smaller shredded particles of the bark are mixed with the pulp made from waste office paper.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

My new paper products designs make extensive use of all sorts of recycable materials. The fabric pieces used for these gift bags are cut-offs that I buy at different second hand shops in my city and from the SPCA.

All the buttons, wool and the ribbons come from there as well. I get a lot of donations now because people know that I create these products. They bring me shells and stones that have a special shape, old rusty nails, plastic lids, bottle lids, broken mirror pieces, glass pieces, drift wood pieces and many many more objects which I incorporate into my cards and gift bags.

The name " the undisciplined range " was chosen because I did not want perfection and structure. I was looking for a look that is more playful and unconventional.I am going to show some of my new products in this article.

The small gift bags you can see in the first picture are made from old shredded office paper that has been run though a whizzer- a big mixing machine - for several hours to make a smooth pulp. After the sheets have been casted they are pressed with a hydraulic press. The have a very smooth and glossy surface.

CARDS FOR EVERY OCCASION

I have created a great selection of funky and unqiue cards. I enjoy working with old rusty metal pieces, like nails or screws or broken of metal pieces. I have designed a beautiful card with a flower motif entirely made out of old rusty nails. Other designs are also available.

This range has an organic look and feel. There is a wide variety of dairies, notebooks, stationary sets, greeting cards and gift bags in various sizes and colours from which you can choose. They make lovely and unique gifts. You can buy my products in handmade paper section in my etsy-shop: on Chocolat Negro Recycled Design And Art

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WELCOME TO LUCY & ISA

Lucy & Isa is a dynamic business that manufacturers exquisite hand made paper and paper products. The paper of our range is made out of 100% recycled old office paper mixed with the bark of alien invasive trees that are found in South- Africa.We are an eco-sustainable business and 90% of all material that we use for the finishing touches of our products consists of discarded and recycled items. In this blog I am sharing our new creations and the latest developments with you.

About Me

Hi my name is Isabella nick-named Chocolat. I live in a beautiful coastal town in South-Africa. I am a designer, street photographer, visual artist and writer. I write about what inspires me and the life around me. I like living in warm countries, drinking ice cold Chardonnay and eating seafood. It is useless and stupid to resist chocolate. If milky with almonds, if dark then with Chili or orange please. I like traveling, surfing, dancing, music, the sea, laughter and friendship. Intensity and passion is a must. The two people that I would like to meet if I could are Jesus and Ernest Hemingway.